Hey just torqued down my one of my head gaskets on my new shortblock today. I noticed that I forgot to clean the oil off of my deck surface before installation. I hope that this is not going to cause the gasket to leak or fail. Does anybody have any more info on this?

I noticed that it said in one of my books to clean with solvent before hand.

 

Yes, it should have been perfectly clean of oil or contaminants. If too contaminated, it might not seal.

 

damn do you think i ruined my gaskets? I am just going to buy more I guess just to be safe. What a stupid error. One of the gaskets is not torqued, but has sat on the surface. I guess better to catch this problem now while engine is still on stand.

 

I'd take care of it just in case. $100 now or replace it later after everything is on the engine. What's your time worth?

 

If you haven't run the motor yet and the heads have only been on for a short time then go ahead and reuse the head gaskets.

 

If they are composite gaskets and are soaked with oil, I wouldn't.

 

It's way easier and cheaper now to toss that gasket and replace it. Composite gaskets go on dry, and the mounting surfaces must be perfectly clean and oil-free.

If you don't, you're going to be doing it again, later, when it's in the car and a lot harder.

 

Yeah that is why I asked here. It was a 100 dollar screw up. I would much rather change them on the stand, then risk having them leak on the engine after the fact. It sucks but lesson learned here. I had oil on the block to protect it , just goofed and forgot to get it off.

 

Yeah, sanitizing the mating surfaces is always the last thing you do before putting a gasket on.